Every once in a while I have an AUH-MAZING idea and this bad boy I have to say is an AUH-MAZING idea!

When we moved in to this place we knew that we wanted to convert the basement garage into living space. We tossed a lot of different ideas around…a TV / theater room, an office, a 2nd master suite, etc. Micah and I aren’t fans of huge bedrooms and a one car garage makes a big bedroom leaving lots of space for junk. We settled on a bedroom for our oldest, a little hallway, and a closet for extra storage. We were in full planning mode for the bedroom and storage closet build, meanwhile, our two littles were sleeping together every night.

They are SO sweet cuddled up together but Kell’s twin bed was starting to get a little small for them. Someone was always get squished towards the wall or on the floor. They each have their own beds in different rooms but they want to be together. Bunk beds are always fun but Ash didn’t want to sleep on the top bunk every night and Kell’s a bit too small to be a top bunker. Besides both of the kid rooms we currently have would be too tight for bunks. Then it hit me…we could build a bunk room!

The two littles could use it now and it would be perfect for sleep overs. We’ll have plenty of room for Gray to bring friends home from college someday and then further down the road space for grandkids! Cue the harps! We have a winning idea!!!

So here’s the plan…

2 sets of built in bunks

each bunk will have a light, niche with electrical and USB outlet

2 custom armoire style built in closets with a set of 2 drawers

window seat (the window seat is for me because I always wanted)

The bunks will be built in an L shape along this wall and where the garage door is now.

The closest will flank this window with a window seat in the middle. I want this wall to be symmetrical.

Our challenge is that we need access to the water shut off on the right and the electrical panel on the left.

Micah was excited to get started so he took out the garage door and started framing in the wall.

We love that our house has this great basement family room with lots of space for our three growing boys. Unfortunately, it lacked places to hide away all of the stuff that comes with three growing boys so we decided to DIY an AUH-MAZING storage solution.

We lucked out and had this wall with a one car garage on the other side. A garage that we want to turn into a bedroom eventually so eating up a little bit space for a lot of storage made perfect sense.

We started by building huge boxes out of MDF down in the shop. Once the boxes were built Micah smashed through the old wall and framed in the new space for the MDF cabinet boxes we built.

Carrying these boxes from the shop up to the basement was a big job for my little muscles. Poor Micah kept having to stop and let me readjust my grip. Moments like these make us miss our old neighborhood where we had plenty of neighbors who could help.

Once the boxes were in place we were ready for shelves. We personally love the clear Sterolite plastic bins. We buy ours at Home Depot and use them everywhere! You can see what’s in them & if the boys break them it’s not the end of the world. Before we started building the shelves we measured the biggest plastic bin and built the two bottom shelves tall enough to house them.

With shelving in it was time to paint! After a coat of primer and three coats of matte white the inside of the cabinets were ready to be organized!

I went through all of the toys and sorted them accordingly. Arranged all of our tubs, books, and games on the shelves and that’s how it sat for months. Life for our family and work for Micah just got super busy. There was no time for doors.

After feeling extra crazy for what seemed like forever Micah and I wanted to finish off the family room built-in cabinets to give ourselves a sense of accomplishment and sanity. We decided on a three panel style door.

To create these doors you need 1/2″ MDF for the doors themselves and 1/4″ MDF for the panel detail.

We ripped down the 1/2″ sheets to the cabinet door dimensions.

Next we cut strips of 1/4″ MDF to crate the panel look.

2 strips the length of the door and then 2 strips to lay horizontally to create the three panels.

We attached the 14″ MDF to the doors with tiny nails.

Micah decided to spray all the doors since there were so many and we wanted a smooth finish. After 1 coat of primer; two coats of matte pure white paint by Behr and some dry time they were ready to hang.

We added a “dummy” door at the end to complete the wall and I’m SO glad we did! Who knew a wall of doors would make my heart swoon so much!

I loved the doors so much I really wanted something special for the pulls. I found these gorg pulls that were only $40 a piece….only. If you don’t know me well you might think I was being serious but I don’t EVER see myself spending that kind of cash per pull!

My brilliant husband came up with the idea of using angle iron for the pulls. I told him to tell me more….

He did even better and made me a sample. I seriously drooled a bit when I saw it! Oh blackened metal how you make me swoon!

I gave him the go ahead and within a blink of the eye we had our pulls. I’m not going to lie and say that I don’t stop to just stare at them but there is one problem…. these beauties just upped our basement game by a lot. As in everything else looks like crap next to them, but I keep telling myself that it takes time. It makes me feel better when I walk down there to tell the family room that I’m coming for it. Yes, I’m all that kinds of crazy.

WELCOME!

I'm Shelly ~ wife of Micah, mama to three fabulous boys, lover of coffee, & all things creative! Welcome to Dolen Diaries! This is where I share a little of this & that....DIY & craft projects, kids crafts, & daily life as a boy mama. Read More…

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